On September 13, 2000, Local No. 727-C, WCCME, AFSCME, AFL-CIO filed a
petition
with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission to clarify an existing bargaining unit
of
Menomonie School District employees by including the Payroll Coordinator. The District
argues that
the Payroll Coordinate is a confidential employee who should continue to be excluded from
the
existing unit.

Dec. No. 14738-C

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Dec. No. 14738-C

Examiner John R. Emery, a member of the Commission's staff, conducted a hearing
on
February 8, 2001, in Menomonie, Wisconsin. The parties filed briefs by April 23, 2001,
whereupon
the record was closed.

To maximize the ability of the parties we serve to utilize the Internet and
computer
software to research decisions and arbitration awards issued by the Commission and its staff,
footnote text is found in the body of this decision.

Having reviewed the record and being fully advised in the premises, the Commission
makes
and issues the following

FINDINGS OF FACT

The Menomonie School District, herein the District, is a municipal employer with
offices at 718
North Broadway Street, Menomonie, Wisconsin 54751.

4. Prior to May, 2000, the District maintained a bargaining
unit position of Payroll Clerk,
which was held by Dianna Hatli. The job description for that position was as follows:

TITLE: Payroll Clerk

NUMBER OF
HOURS: 2080

REPORTS TO:
Business Manager

QUALIFICATIONS
: Demonstrated competency in use of all office machines to
include RS6000 computer and Skyward government payroll software. Knowledge of federal
and state government payroll regulations. Ability to maintain absolute confidentiality,
possess
interpersonal relationships

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Dec. No. 14738-C

that allow for payroll accuracy, provide a
customer-first focus, carry
out oral and written instructions, exercise prudent judgment, and work
extra time as workload dictates.

JOB GOAL: To
efficiently and accurately process district biweekly payroll
in excess of 550 employees in a customer-first manner.

EXAMPLES OF DUTIES:

(Essential functions of the job are identified
by an asterisk preceding the example. The
identification of the essential function is NOT exhaustive and may be supplemented as
necessary.)

*Prepare all payroll
documentation for entry into computer software to include:

Verify hours worked on time cards
with work schedules, policies, and collective bargaining
agreements.

Prepare W-2 data for transfer to
computer software administrator for creating W-2 reports for
employees and prepare the W-2 reports for distribution.

Complete written and telephone
verification requests for employee wages and length of employment.

Prepare payroll reports of benefits
and deductions for the budgetary process prior to check printing
so that deduction payments can be made to annuity companies, garnishments, payroll taxes,
FICA, and retirement.

Annual DPI Fall Staff Report.

*Provide payroll-related and
general office support functions to include:

receive an on-going
accounting/use history for each employee participating in flexible
benefits.

Share Administrative Service
Center receptionist duties.

Provide payroll orientation to all
new employees and provide direction for completion of necessary
forms.

Research and answer payroll-related
questions for customers.

File payroll-related documents for
personnel files with secretary to the Assistant to the
Superintendent or personnel secretary.

*Perform all other duties as
directed.

. . .

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Dec. No. 14738-C

The Payroll Clerk had access to employee personnel files for payroll related purposes,
but did not
attend meetings regarding collective bargaining or contract administration.

5. In May, 2000, the District created the position of Payroll Coordinator as a
non-bargaining unit position to replace the position of Payroll Clerk. The position is salaried
and is paid
the equivalent to an hourly wage of $16.51. The previous wage of the Payroll Clerk had
been $12.03
per hour. The Payroll Coordinator is supervised by the District's Business Manager,
currently Jeffrey
Hoegger. Hatli continued in the new position until July, 2000, when she took the position of
Accounting Coordinator, which is also a non-bargaining unit position. The job description
for the
Payroll Coordinator position is identical to that of the Payroll Clerk in most respects, but
does include
the following additional duties:

6. In July, 2000, Bridget Schroeder became the Payroll Coordinator. She has
been
employed by the District since 1996 and has previously held bargaining unit positions as
Resource
Secretary, Middle School Secretary and Accounts Payable Clerk. Prior to taking the Payroll
Coordinator position, Schroeder also served as President of Local No. 727-C.

Schroeder participates as a member of the District bargaining team in negotiations
with the
District's three bargaining units, which are affiliated either with AFSCME or West Central
Education
Association. In this capacity, she attends meetings with the school board, District
administrators and
bargaining unit employees. At the present time, the District engages in consensus bargaining
with
its represented employees in the negotiation of contracts. The AFSCME unit typically
bargains on
a three-year cycle, whereas the WCEA units bargain on a two-year cycle. The District
addresses the
wages and benefits of its unrepresented employees annually.

In its consensus bargaining process, the District's bargaining team meets in open
session with
the union's bargaining team and all issues raised by the parties are addressed collectively.
The parties
do not break into individual caucuses during negotiating sessions to confer, as is typically the
case
in a traditional bargaining model, and all pertinent information is shared with all team
members from
both sides. However, prior to the commencement of the consensus process, the management
team
meets to determine the issues it wishes to raise and to discuss the feasibility of various
proposals.

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Dec. No. 14738-C

The Payroll Coordinator also participates in or is aware of management discussions
regarding
how the existing contract should be administered as to matters such as employee layoffs.

The Coordinator's confidential labor relations duties cannot be performed by other
non-bargaining unit District employees.

7. Bridget Schroeder has sufficient access to, knowledge of, and participation in
confidential matters relating to labor relations to be a confidential employee.

Based on the above and foregoing Findings of Fact, the Commission makes and
issues
the
following

CONCLUSION OF LAW

1. Bridget Schroeder is a confidential employee within the meaning of
Sec. 111.70(1)(i),
Stats., and, therefore, is not a municipal employee within the meaning of Sec. 111. 70(1)(i),
Stats.

Based on the above and foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusion of Law, the
Commission
makes and issues the following

ORDER CLARIFYING BARGAINING
UNIT

The Payroll Coordinator shall continue to be excluded from the bargaining unit
described in
Finding of Fact 3.

Given under our hands and seal at the City of Madison, Wisconsin this
23rd day of October, 2001.

WISCONSIN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION

James R.
Meier, Chairperson

A. Henry
Hempe, Commissioner

Paul A.
Hahn, Commissioner

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Dec. No. 14738-C

MENOMONIE SCHOOL DISTRICT

MEMORANDUM ACCOMPANYING FINDINGS
OF FACT,

CONCLUSION OF LAW AND ORDER
CLARIFYING BARGAINING UNIT

POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES

The Union

The only significant difference between the duties of the Payroll Coordinator and the
former
Payroll Clerk is the "preparation of salary negotiation reports" function referenced at point
28 of the
job description. The Payroll Clerk had identical access and responsibilities regarding payroll
records
and personnel files.

The Payroll Coordinator is not involved with confidential matters relating to labor
relations
to a significant degree. In essence, less than 6% of her time is spent dealing with labor
negotiations.
Furthermore, all three of the District's bargaining units engage in consensus bargaining in
their
contract negotiations. In this process, the parties do not caucus separately and all
information is
available to all participants, including the bargaining representative. Therefore, strictly
speaking,
there is no "confidential" information and the Payroll Coordinator cannot be a confidential
employee.

It is also the case that the labor related duties of the Payroll Coordinator were
previously
performed by the Business Manager. Further, the Accounting Coordinator, another
confidential
position as also capable of performing these tasks, eliminating the need for an additional
confidential
employee. For all the foregoing reasons, the Payroll Coordinator should be included in the
bargaining
unit.

The District

The Payroll Coordinator position is confidential and should be excluded from the
bargaining
unit. The employee aids in developing bargaining strategy, provides costing data for
negotiations and
has access to confidential information contained in personnel files. The Commission has
consistently
held that employees with job functions similar to, or less confidential than, those of the
Payroll
Coordinator are confidential employees and are not be included in a bargaining unit.
Commission
precedent dictates, therefore, that the Payroll Coordinator should be excluded as well.

Further, the Payroll Coordinator's confidential duties are not de
minimus in nature and could
not readily be handled by another employee. Costing is a function that was previously done
by the
Executive Assistant in the Human Resources Department and was late passed to

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Dec. No. 14738-C

the Business Manager, Accounting Coordinator and Network Coordinator ­ all
non-bargaining unit
employees. Due to restructuring and increased workloads, none of these employees is
capable of
handling the Payroll Coordinator's confidential duties, as well. The Payroll Coordinator is
the only
employee who can perform these functions and, therefore, the position should be excluded
from the
bargaining unit.

DISCUSSION

For an employee to be held confidential, such employee must have sufficient access
to,
knowledge of, or participation in confidential matters relating to labor relations. For
information to
be confidential, it must: (a) deal with the employer's strategy or position in collective
bargaining,
contract administration, litigation or other similar matters pertaining to labor relations and
grievance
handling between the bargaining representative and the employer; and (b) be information
which is not
available to the bargaining representative or its agents. 1/

1/ Dane County, Dec. No. 22796-C (WERC,
9/88)

While a de minimus exposure to confidential matters is generally
insufficient grounds for
exclusion of an employee from a bargaining unit, 2/ we have also sought to protect an
employer's
right to conduct its labor relations through employees whose interests are aligned with those
of
management. 3/ Thus, notwithstanding the actual amount of confidential work conducted,
but
assuming good faith on the part of the employer, an employee may be found to be
confidential where
the person in question is the only one available to perform legitimate confidential work 4/
and
similarly, where a management employee has significant labor relations responsibility, the
clerical
employee assigned as his or her secretary may be found to be confidential, even if the actual
amount
of confidential work is not significant, where the confidential work cannot be assigned to
another
employee without undue disruption of the employer's organization. 5/

The history of this position and its antecedents with respect to inclusion in the
bargaining unit
is not uniform. The position of Payroll Clerk was originally included in the bargaining unit.
In 1992,
however, the position was, by mutual consent, classified as

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Dec. No. 14738-C

confidential and removed from the bargaining unit (Union Ex. #1). The reason for this
move is
unclear, but it may have been tied to the inclusion of other positions in the bargaining unit
(Tr. 66-67). In 1994, the position was offered to Dianna Hatli on an interim basis, at which
time it was still
a non-bargaining unit position (Tr. 43-44, Jt. Ex. #3). In February, 1995, the position was
returned
to the bargaining unit and was eventually filled by Hatli on a permanent basis (Tr. 45-46).
At the time
the position was placed back in the bargaining unit, the job description was amended to
remove
"provide salary negotiations support through software reports" as a job duty, but remained
identical
in all other material respects (Jt. Ex. #3, Jt. Ex. #5). Hatli testified that while serving as
Payroll Clerk,
she occasionally found it difficult to reconcile her union loyalties with maintaining
confidentiality
regarding management labor relations information to which she was privy. By way of
example, Hatli
cited information regarding prospective position cuts and knowledge regarding management
decisions
that affected groups of employees differently (Tr. 49-51). The position remained in
the bargaining
unit until it was redesigned in May 2000 and retitled Payroll Coordinator. At that time the
job
description was again amended to include the following duties:

Essentially, therefore, the previous salary negotiation support function was returned to
the position,
and the costing and timekeeping oversight functions were added.

The Union argues that the Coordinator is not confidential employee on a number of
grounds.
It first contends that the Coordinator spends a de minimus first amount of
time on labor relations
matters. In support of this argument, the Union postulates that less than 6% of the Payroll
Coordinator's time is spent on labor matters.

The Coordinator's costing duties make her a critical part of the District's
management
team
both when contract are negotiated and when an existing contract is administered. While
these duties
do not take up a significant amount of the Coordinator's time, their importance makes them
much
more than a de minimus part of her job. Thus, we reject the Union
argument.

The Union next argues that the labor relations information to which the Coordinator
is
privy
is not confidential inasmuch as the parties engage in consensus bargaining wherein the parties
freely
exchange all relevant information in their negotiation process.

While the sharing of relevant information is an essential component of consensus
bargaining,
the fact that the District engages in this form of collective bargaining does not divest its
negotiators
of the confidential status they would otherwise possess in a traditional collective bargaining.
As
reflected in this record, prior to the commencement of the consensus

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Dec. No. 14738-C

process, the District management team meets separately to discuss the issues it may
wish to raise and
the ramifications that differing resolutions of those issues may have for the District. The
Coordinator
is privy to those discussions and provides the financial information that is considered by the
management team during those discussions. The Union is not privy to information/issues
that
management considered but elected not to raise as a result of these confidential discussions.
Further,
once a contract is bargained, the Coordinator is involved in or privy to management
discussions
regarding how the contract should be administered. The Union is not aware of this
confidential labor
relations information. As reflected in Hatli's testimony, knowledge of this type is not
compatible with
inclusion in the bargaining unit.

The Union lastly contends that the duties of the Payroll Coordinator, to the extent
they are
confidential, could be handled by either the Business Manager or the Accounting
Coordinator. The
Business Manager, Jeffrey Hoegger, testified that he is not trained to use the software on
which the
projections and payroll information are developed by the Payroll Coordinator. The
Accounting
Coordinator has the skills to perform the confidential functions as the Payroll Coordinator
but does
not have time to perform these confidential duties on more than an emergency basis. Thus,
we reject
this Union argument.

For all the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the Payroll Coordinator is a
confidential
employee and should appropriately continue to be excluded from the bargaining unit.